The Blues
by CherryCrush23
Summary: When things seemed to be going bad for Nathan, he didn't know who to turn to. When things seemed to crumble for him, he finds himself confiding in someone he would have never expected. His brother's best friend.


**Disclaimer: I don't own One Tree Hill or its characters. I also don't own the song used.**

**Summary: Nathan Scott felt like his whole life was crumbling around him. His parents were fighting constantly and were on the verge of divorce. His mom was relapsing again and he was feeling even more pressure from his dad to do well with basketball. When he needed someone to talk to, he turns to someone he would have never expected.**

**Emily: Ross come on! There's a deer just outside eating fruit from the orchard!**

**Ross: I have to go there's a deer just outside eating fruit from the orchard!**

**The Blues. **

Nathan stood on the faded free throw line of the river court in the cold November air. He bounced the faded orange basketball on the cold pavement and then twirled it in his hands before shooting it towards the net. It went straight through and heard the chinking sounds of the metal net as the ball went through. The ball bounced back towards him and he caught it in his hands again. He twirled it in his palms again and looked back up at the net. He used to get a feeling of pride when he made shots like that. But that feeling faded with time. Maybe it was the fact that no matter how well he thought he did, there was a voice in the back of his head that told him he could do better. Whatever he did wasn't his best and he could do better. That voice sounded strangely like Dan Scott. Nathan's father was intense when it came to his son and basketball. Nathan remembered playing basketball when he was younger. Even then, Nathan felt the weight Dan put on his shoulders.

Dan signed Nathan up to play basketball as soon as he was old enough to dribble the ball. Nathan had always loved the game, even with the added pressure of his dad. For awhile while he was younger, basketball wasn't the only sport he played. One summer he played on a little league team and he was a pitcher. His dad was the coach. He could remember that as one of the worst summers of his life. He was only around 9 years old but he remembered hating that summer. Having his dad boss him around for 3 months was hell. He couldn't wait for basketball to start. At least his dad wasn't his coach then. When Nathan was 14 his dad signed him up to play foot ball. He liked that too. He was good at that. But his dad took him out because he was worried that Nathan would get injured. God forbid anything ruin the chances of him playing basketball. But now the only sport Nathan played was basketball. He didn't see that changing anytime soon. But he wasn't upset about the fact that he played basketball only. He loved the game.

Nathan bounced the ball on the court a few more times before doing a lay up. He grabbed the ball again and walked towards the picnic table and sat down on the top and faced the water. The cold wind blew around him stinging his cheeks and numbing his hands He zipped up his jacket more and rested his elbows against his knees. He turned to look farther down the river when he heard the horn of a boat. He never really got used to hearing that sound. It surprised him every time. He watched the boat move slowly across the water. He looked at his watch and saw that he'd been at the court for hours. But the last thing he wanted was to go home. He could think of a lot of other things he would rather do than go home. He didn't want to listen to his parents fight over the littlest things and he didn't want to have to pretend like he didn't know that his mom was drinking late in the kitchen late at night after she took her pills. God even knew what she was taking. No he most definitely didn't want to be home for that.

He sat on the table for a few minutes longer before he got up and walked towards his Black Cadillac Escalade. He stared his car and loud rap music began to play from his speaker. He turned it down a little bit before pulling his car out to the road. He drove down into town and parked his car outside of Karen's Café. He could tell from the outside that it was beginning to get busier inside. He stopped his car and got out before making his way inside. He walked through the door and the bell dinged above his head signaling that he had walked in. Lucas Scott looked up from behind the counter and saw Nathan walk in. Nathan made his way towards the counter and sat down in one of the chairs and rested his elbows against the counter. "Hey man," Lucas said, "you ok?" he asked.

Nathan nodded his head, "just beat that's all." Karen Roe stood in the doorway of the kitchen watching her son talk to Nathan. She was surprised that they had managed to become friends. It seemed like it was impossible that that would ever happen. She knew that Nathan was behind most of the hazing that happened to Lucas when he joined the team. She listened to Lucas rant about how much he hated Nathan and Dan and now the fact that Lucas and Nathan were friends, really surprised her. But she was happy about it. Not just for Lucas, but for Nathan. She had a feeling that living with Dan wasn't exactly easy for Nathan. Maybe being away from him was just what he needed. And she was happy to help with that.

She used to worry that having Nathan around would bring Dan around more often too, but the more Nathan came around, the more Dan kept his distance. Karen grabbed a pot of coffee and a coffee cup and walked over to where Nathan and Lucas were standing. "Hey Nathan," she said and smiled. Nathan looked up at her and smiled back. He unzipped his sweatshirt and shrugged it off his shoulders. "Hey Miss Roe." Karen filled up the coffee cup in front of him and set the pot down.

"I told you Nathan, call me Karen." The older woman smiled at him again before going to check on the customers. Nathan took a sip of the hot coffee in the cup and could feel the warmth spread through his cold body. He listened as Lucas talked about something he wasn't really paying attention too. He couldn't help but let his eyes wander around the café. He wondered what it was like for Lucas to spend most of his time growing up there. He had no doubt that it was better than spending nights in front of the TV with Dan watching old basketball games. There were many days that Nathan envied Lucas. But he would never tell him that. But he had a feeling that Lucas knew. Lucas worked on balancing the cash register and Nathan turned his head when he heard the bell above the door ring again. He turned and saw his Uncle Keith walk in. Keith wore a pair of jeans with work boots. He also wore a black vest over a long sleeve red shirt. Keith smiled at his nephews before walking towards them and taking a seat next to Nathan at the counter.

"Hey guys," Keith said. Lucas smiled at his uncle and said hello before going back to his job at the register. "Hey Nate," Keith said facing the younger of his nephews. Nathan looked up at his uncle and smiled. Sometimes it was hard for Nathan to believe that Keith and Dan were even related. Keith was such a good person who would do anything for his family, while Dan was selfish and only cared about himself. Another thing that Nathan envied about Lucas's childhood was the fact that he got to grow up with Keith. Keith was like a dad to Lucas and Nathan was just beginning to really get to know him. Keith helped Karen raise Lucas from day one. Nathan wished he was as close with him as Lucas was.

"Hey Keith," Nathan said.

"How've you been?"

Nathan shrugged, "ok I guess." Nathan took another sip of his coffee. "I've just been working on my game pretty hard lately. I guess I'm just tired."

"You're dad's really got you working hard doesn't he?" Keith asked already knowing the answer. He didn't even need to ask. Keith knew how his brother was. Basketball was all he cared about when it came to Nathan's future. Nathan would have a great basketball pedigree and Dan made sure that Nathan used it. Even if Nathan was tired or hurting and over worked. He made sure that Nathan practiced until he was sick. Keith remembered one time in particular when Nathan had just turned 16 and Keith came over to wish him a happy birthday. Dan had him working out outback. Keith watched him and saw how tired he was. Nathan worked himself so hard because of Dan that night he really made himself sick and spent the night throwing up. What a way to spend your 16th birthday. Or the day after.

"Yeah but if I'm captain this year, I have to work extra hard. He knows that. Besides I'm pretty much used to working like this. It's a pretty normal thing by now," Nathan said. Keith shook his head and said, "just don't work yourself too hard. I've seen what happens when you do that."

Nathan nodded remembering the day Keith was talking about. "Are you guys excited for the season?"

Lucas nodded, "yeah, with Nate as our captain, we'll have a great season. Plus some of our first games are going to be pretty easy I think. I mean Cove City shouldn't be that hard and then there's Oak Lake Academy. They've got weak defense and then Pickerington who sucks no matter how much they practice," Lucas said going through the teams. Nathan knew he was right about them being easy games. But that only meant that he was going to work harder to get even more points to kill them. It was something Dan expected. If it was an easy team, you should beat them by more. Just to prove how much better you are then them. Plus Dan set a record against Cove City. This year Nathan planned to beat that. That was his goal. The one thing he wanted to accomplish more than anything this season. He wanted to prove how much better he was than his dad.

The bell rang again as the door opened. Nathan turned again to see who was coming through the door this time. "Sorry I know I'm late!" Haley James said loudly as she walked inside the café. She was dressed in short black skirt that buttoned all the way up the front. She wore a cream colored V neck sweater under her red corduroy pea coat. On her feet she wore a pair of gray slouch boots over he black knee high socks. She shrugged off her pea coat and hung it on the coat rack. "There was a family issue at home, and I'm sorry it won't happen again," she said looking at Karen who was making her way towards the younger girl. Haley pushed her hair behind her ears and looked at her.

"Haley," Karen said, "don't worry about it. You can make it up to my cleaning up that table," she said motioning to a table by the window. Haley walked towards the counter and grabbed her green apron and tied it around her waist. She smiled at Lucas and grabbed a gray bucket and went to the table to collect the dishes. She piled them into the tub and began to wipe down the table with a cloth. Her layered honey blonde hair fell into her face so she tucked it behind her ears again. Nathan shifted in his chair slightly and watched her work before turning back to look at Lucas. Haley walked over not even a minute later and brought the tub into the kitchen. When she walked out she walked up next to Lucas.

She rested her elbows against the counter and rested her head against her palms. "You ok Hales?" Lucas asked looking down at Haley who was standing next to him. She sighed and looked up at him, "yeah, just you know stuff at home with Taylor," she replied looking at her friend. Lucas nodded not needing to hear anymore. He understood what she meant when she said 'stuff with Taylor.' Taylor was known for being a hand full. Haley sighed again before walking from behind the counter and to take the orders of the people who had just walked in.

"I didn't know that Taylor was back," Keith said, "that's always hard," he said. Lucas nodded and Nathan looked between the two of them. "What's wrong with her?" he asked curiously.

"Well they don't call her _Hurricane Taylor _for no reason. She's just always been a hand full. She doesn't come home that much but when she does, she usually just needs money or something before she takes off again. It's just hard for Haley and her parents when she decides to come around unexpectedly."

Nathan nodded in understanding and turned to look at Haley who was now taking the order to the kitchen. He didn't even really know what was going on with her right now but he couldn't help but feel sorry for her. Maybe he wasn't the only one who was trying deal with family problems.

**Is this the New Year or just another night?  
Is this the new fear or just another fright?  
Is this the new tear or just another desperation?**

* * *

Haley walked through the front door of her house and dropped her bag on the ground near the door. It felt like her shift went longer than usual tonight but she was sure it hadn't. She walked past the steps and into the kitchen. She saw her parents sitting at the kitchen table with the phone by them. She'd never really seen them worry like that. "Did she call you?" Lydia James asked looking up at her youngest daughter. Haley shook her head, "no mom," she said, "she didn't call me. And I'm taking she didn't call you either?" she asked.

Jimmy shook his head but didn't say anything. Haley nodded and turned around to walk up the stairs. She made her way up and stopped in front of Taylor's room. It was empty of everything that Taylor had brought home. Which hadn't been much, she'd admit that. She shut the door to her room before heading towards her own. She flipped on the light and sat down on her bed. She wasn't surprised that Taylor was gone. She didn't see what was so different about this time. Haley was pretty much used to this version of Taylor. The Taylor that only called or came home when it was convenient for her. The Taylor who came home to get something from her parents only to take off the next day. She was used to that Taylor by now. Sad as it was. But she couldn't deny the fact that she missed the old Taylor. The Taylor that used to be her sister. Haley remembered a time when she felt like Taylor was one of her best friends and someone she thought she could trust more than anyone. There would be nights when they were younger when they would stay up and talk all night. She couldn't even remember what they had talked about. At the time it didn't matter. They just liked to stay up and talk about whatever. But Taylor seemed to change. She didn't know when it was exactly but it was like one day Taylor was a completely different person.

Haley had always heard that people change but it was impossible for them to change back. Taylor had made her believe that. As hard as that was to believe. Taylor proved to that people can't change back. It didn't matter how many times Taylor had told her she was still the same person, she wasn't the same. She would never be that Taylor again and Haley gave up wishing that she would be. There wasn't anything that was going to get her to change and there was no point in Haley trying to get her to change.

Haley stood up and turned on her iPod on her iHome and changed into her pajamas. She laid in her bed listening to the music that was playing. She let her mind leave the problems with her family. Her thoughts went back to the café and she thought about Nathan. Something about him was off tonight. He seemed upset. She didn't know him that well, they had never been really good friends. But she was starting to get to know him better and tonight he just wasn't himself. He seemed like he was just sad about something. And even though he wasn't her best friend, part of her wished she could figure out why and find a way to make him better. That was a weird feeling for her. Maybe Nathan was going through more than anyone knew, just like she was.

* * *

Nathan pulled up in the drive way of his house. He didn't see his father's car but that didn't mean that he wasn't home. He could have parked his car in his garage. Nathan sat in the driver's seat stalling for as long as possible. The longer he stayed in the car, the less he would have to see his dad. He eventually turned the engine off and got out of the car. He walked through the side door and walked towards the stairs. He could hear a game on the TV and he knew his dad was home. He tried to walk as quietly as he could towards the stairs. He thought he might actually make it up the stairs without Dan realizing he was home. "Nathan." Nathan sighed. No dice. Nathan walked towards the living room and saw his dad sitting in on of the large leather chairs watching an old Ravens game from the last season. "Nathan, you had 8 turn over's in this one half. 8. What scouts are going to be impressed by this?" he asked motioning to the TV. Nathan looked at the game and saw the Oak Lake Game playing on the TV.

"That's never gonna happen again," Nathan said, "that was just an off game for me."

"It had better not happen again. You know that if a scout from Duke saw you play like that, no way in hell would you ever get there. Not with your grades. You have to be better this season Nathan. You have to play better this season."

"I must not have been that horrible last year," Nathan said, "I mean I made captain didn't I?" he asked and crossed his arms over his chest defensively. Dan paused the game on the screen and turned to look at Nathan. He stood up and said, "don't be a smart ass Nathan. Not to me." Nathan looked down at the ground. He wasn't in the mood to fight with his dad. Not tonight. He was tried and all he wanted was to go to bed. "I'll wake you up at 6 tomorrow," Dan said, "we're going for a run. I have to work tomorrow, but we can get in a good work out before I have to leave," he said. Nathan nodded not in the mood to argue. Dan looked away from his son and looked back at the screen. Nathan walked out of the living room and into the kitchen and he saw his mother sitting at the kitchen island. She had a magazine in front of her and glass of red wine in her hand.

"Hi mom," he said when he walked in. Deb looked up at her son and smiled. "Hi honey," she said, "how was your day?" she asked closing her magazine and setting down the glass of wine.

"It was fine," Nathan said, "I'm just tired you know?"

"Good thing it's the weekend then. Any parties this weekend?"

"Why you wanna go?" Nathan joked. Deb laughed and Nathan said, "I don't know, there's probably one. I think Tim said something about a party at his beach house. But I don't know if I'm gonna go though."

"Why wouldn't you?"

"I'll probably be pretty tired. Dad's got a big work out planned for us tomorrow morning," he said. Deb shook her head and sighed. "Nathan, if you don't want to work out tomorrow I can talk to your dad about it." Nathan shook his head. He knew what that would lead to. It would just turn into another pointless fight. That was the last thing he wanted. He hated going into his room at night and listening to them yell over pointless shit. There was just no point in it. "Mom, you really don't have to do that. It's ok."

"No Nathan, it's not ok," she said, "he's been working you really hard lately-"

"And now that I'm captain I'm going to have to work extra hard this year. I expect that stuff from dad. Especially now."

"Nathan you need some time off. You've been working really hard lately. Let me talk to him," she said walking out of the kitchen. Nathan shook his head and walked to the fridge grabbing a bottle of Gatorade and walked up the stairs towards his room. He walked in and turned the light on and dropped the bottle of Gatorade on his bed. He walked over to his stereo and turned it on letting whatever CD was in begin to play. Soon Eminem began to play from the speakers and he listened to the angry lyrics pour from the speakers. He changed into a pair of basketball shorts and pulled off his wife beater before sitting on the edge of his bed and sipping his Gatorade. He could hear the beginnings of a fight downstairs. He shook his head before standing up and walking over to the stereo and turned it up letting it go as high as it could go before collapsing back against his bed and putting the pillow over his face trying to block out everything.

**Is this the finger or just another fist?  
Is this the kingdom or just a hit n' miss?  
A misdirection, most in all this desperation**

* * *

Nathan made his way into the house and wiped sweat away from his forehead with the collar of his shirt. He was just getting back from his work out with Dan. Dan had made his way up stairs and started getting ready for work. Nathan walked into the kitchen and saw his mom standing by the sink. He watched as she opened an orange pill bottle and shook the bottle pouring what looked like for pills into her hand. She popped them into her mouth and swallowed them down with something clear. It looked like water but he had a feeling that it was vodka. "Hey mom," he said walking into the kitchen. Deb quickly poured what was left in the glass into the sink before putting the glass in the dishwasher. "Hey Nate," she said, "how was the work out?" she asked. He watched her close the pill bottle and set it down on the counter behind her.

"It was fine," he said, "I'm just tired."

"Yeah I'm sorry I couldn't get him to give you a break, I tried, I really did. But you know your father," she said. Nathan nodded, he really did know his father.

"Don't worry about it," he said, "it doesn't matter. Like I said I'm gonna need to work extra hard this year, you know that."

"But you don't want to over work yourself."

"I'll be fine mom. What about you?" he asked with a pointed glance at the bottle behind her. "Are you ok? I didn't know that you were taking anything again." Deb smiled uncomfortably and shook her head, "it's nothing Nathan, I just had a head ache this morning," she said. Nathan nodded but he in no way believed her. He couldn't count the many times over the years that he'd asked her about what she was taking and she claimed it was for a head ache. He just stopped believing her over the years. He highly doubted that she really had headaches every single time he saw her with pills. "Ok," he said, "I'm gonna go shower and I'll probably go down the river court later."

"Ok. Well I might have to go to the office later tonight. So I'll probably be working late. So maybe you do want to go to Tim's party? So you don't have to be here with your father."

"Yeah," he said, "I might go."

* * *

Haley stood in the café waiting for an order for one of her tables to be ready. She felt her phone vibrate in her back pocket. She pulled it out to ignore the call and saw _Taylor_ flash on the screen. "Karen, I need to take this it'll only be a minute," she said. Karen nodded knowing that if Haley said it was important, it must have been. Haley walked outside so not everyone in the café could hear her conversation. "Hello?" she said waiting for her sister to speak.

"Hey Hales."

"What do you want Taylor?"

"You're mad at me too?" she asked and Haley could hear the surprise in her voice.

"Yes, I am a little mad at you Taylor. I'm just sick of you coming home when you need something then leaving the very next day without a word to anyone! Do you realize that mom and dad are worried sick about you. You know it's not like this is the first time you've just shown up without warning and left the next day, but at least you usually remember to say good bye. But I guess not this time."

"Haley-"

"Is there something you need?"

"I wanted to apologize, I'm really sorry. I know you're mad at me, but Haley, I promise that the next time I'm home, it'll be different."

"No it won't Taylor," Haley said, frustration evident in her voice, "it's never different!"

"It will be! I mean it! I don't want to disappoint you anymore, I want things to be the way they used to be between us."

"I just don't see how they can be. And you and I both know that you're not going to change back to the way you were." There was silence on the phone for about a minute. Haley knew that Taylor was thinking about everything that she had just said. "At least call mom and dad and tell them you're ok," Haley said, "I have to get back to work." Haley closed her phone and slipped it back into the back pocket of her jeans. She walked back into the café and Lucas looked up at her when she walked in.

"Everything ok?" he asked.

Haley nodded, "yeah, don't worry about it."

"If you need to go home I can cover your shift."

"No Lucas," Haley said, "you were going to leave soon anyway. I don't need to leave, it wasn't important."

"Ok," he said and grabbed his sweatshirt off the edge of the counter. He could tell she was upset and he walked over to her and wrapped his arms around her. Haley eventually gave in and hugged her best friend back. "Thanks Luke," she said. He nodded and planted a light kiss on the top of her head before walking out the door.

Haley was so grateful to have Lucas in her life. If she hadn't met him when they were 8 she was sure her life would suck for sure. Lucas had been the one thing in her life that she was truly sure about. He was her best friend and she was so glad that she had him to lean on when things were hard. She didn't like to be so dependent on him at times like that, but she was glad he was there. There were times when she felt like he was more of a family than her actual family. She loved her family, but they were so messed up sometimes. With Karen and Lucas, even Keith, things seemed so simple. She wouldn't trade things with them for anything.

Haley had always been really protective of Lucas, just like he was really protective over her. When he first joined the team and all the hazing started, she wanted nothing more than for him to quit the team. It was more than just hazing, and she hated to watch him go through it. She knew that Nathan was behind it and for that whole season, she hated him for what he was doing to her best friend. She remembered the time she showed up at his house one night and practically begged him to leave Lucas alone. She didn't know it, but she was a big part of why Nathan began to lay off on Lucas. When Nathan and Lucas started to become friends, Haley really didn't trust him. But she was starting to see that maybe he wasn't as bad she thought he was. She gave him a second chance when Lucas convinced her that he wasn't as big of an ass as he used to be.

**Is this what they call freedom?  
Is this what you call pain?  
Is this what they call discontented fame?**

* * *

Nathan pulled his car up into the grass and parked it next to 3 other cars at the river court. He shut the engine off before getting out of the car. He saw Lucas standing on the court with Jake Jagelski, Skills Taylor, Junk Moretti and Fergie Thompson. Nathan walked towards the court and the guys looked up and saw him. "Hey Nate," Lucas said. Nathan nodded in response and walked towards the picnic table and took a seat next to Mouth McFadden. "Hey Mouth," Nathan said.

"Hey Nate."

Nathan turned his attention to look at the court. Junk came and sat next to them a few minutes later Junk came and sat by them while Jake and Skills played Lucas and Fergie. Nathan was happy that he'd become friends with these guys lately. He knew that the other guys that played at the River Court were fine not playing on the team. It was the fact that they got to play at all that made them happy. Jake was the only one besides him and Lucas who played for the Ravens. But they all seemed ok to just play together without it being a big and stressful game. Nathan remembered once when Skills told him that if all he did was play on the River Court all his life, he would be fine with that. Nathan wished he could play like that. Without it being a competition and a time to show up his father.

Nathan's phone rang and he pulled it out of his jeans pocket. "Hello?" he said.

"Was sup Playa!"

Nathan rolled his eyes and said, "Tim, don't talk like that," he said, "what are calling for?"

"Reminding you about my party tonight," Tim said, "you're coming right?"

"I don't know, I might."

"You have to! Come on Nate, you bailed on the last party, you have to come tonight."

Nathan chuckled, "ok, we'll just say I'll be there," he said still not knowing if he was really going to go the party or not.

"Don't leave me hanging!" Tim said before hanging up. Nathan shook his head before putting his phone back in his pocket.

They stayed at the court for a few hours switching in players and changing up the teams. Nathan loved it. He loved every second of it. Maybe Skills was right. Maybe playing on the River Court like this was really just what he needed and what he should be doing. But there was no way that his dad would ever settle for that. So that was pretty much not an option. Skills, Fergie and Junk left and Lucas was getting ready to leave to. They were all planning on going to Tim's party. "Hey Mouth, you want me to give you a ride?" Lucas asked. Mouth nodded and the two of them walked towards Lucas's car. Jake came and sat down next to Nathan. "You going to Tim's party?" Nathan asked.

"I don't know," Jake said, "I might, but only for a little bit. I don't want my parents to have to keep staying home with Jenny," he said.

Nathan hadn't been friends with Jake all that long even though they'd both been playing for the Ravens since they were freshmen. When Nathan found out that Jake had a 9 month old daughter, he was so surprised. He didn't know how he was even able to deal with that. He knew that if he were in that situation, he wouldn't be able to be a dad like Jake. And the fact that Jake was a single father, that just didn't function in Nathan's mind. But he'd seen Jake with Jenny. He was a great father. She was lucky to have him as her dad.

"Yeah, how is she?" Nathan asked.

"Good."

The two of them sat in a comfortable silence until Jake's cell phone rang and he answered it. Nathan looked out at the water while he talked on the phone and he watched the many boats on the water. He looked at the people who got on and off of them. He wondered where they were all going or where they'd been. Part of him felt jealous. They could leave whenever they wanted and it wasn't considered a bad thing. He wished he could just leave sometime. Then he wouldn't have to deal with his dad or his mom and dad fighting all the time. He was truly jealous of those people and he didn't even know them, or what they did. All he knew was that they got to leave. "I gotta go," Jake said when he got off the phone. "My dad just called, he said Jenny's got a fever, he thinks she might have a cold."

"Oh well I hope she's ok."

"I'm sure she's fine. But I'm just gonna go make sure. So I might go if she falls asleep early enough, but I don't know yet."

"Alright well maybe I'll see you later, if not I guess I'll just see you around."

Jake nodded and stuck out his fist for Nathan who pounded it with his before Jake turned and walked towards his car. Nathan turned and looked back at the water. About 15 minutes later he heard the sound of a car pulling up and he turned to see who it was just praying to God it wasn't his dad. He saw a dark green Jetta pull up and he didn't really recognize it. A few seconds later he saw Haley get out of the drivers side and begin to walk towards him. She wore a pair of straight leg jeans and a white long sleeve scoop neck t-shirt with a black jacket over it. Her hair was pinned back and her make up natural. "Hi Nathan," she said and walked towards the picnic table.

"Hey Hales," he said, "Lucas left not that long ago to get ready for Tim's party. You just missed him."

"Oh yeah I came to see him but I saw he wasn't here but you were, so I just thought I'd come say hi. Unless you wanted to be alone, which I totally understand, and I'm ruining it for you. If that's true, then I can just-"

"Haley," Nathan said and laughed, "take a breath."

Haley could feel the blush on her cheeks and she looked up at Nathan. "Sorry," she said, "I tend to ramble a lot. It's kind of embarrassing sometimes. But anyway, like I was trying to say before I got carried away, I can leave if you want."

"No," Nathan said quickly, "I would like it if you stayed. I don't mind the company."

Haley smiled and sat down next to Nathan on the table and the two of them looked out at the water. Nathan turned and looked at her and could see she was deep in thought. He wanted to know what was going on in her head. "What are you thinking about?" He asked. Haley shrugged but didn't look away from the water. "I guess just all the people on those boats. Anytime I'm here I just watch the people on the boat and think about where they're going and why. I don't know it's just a random thing I do." She looked up and saw him looking at her and she shook her head, "sorry that was really random."

"I do that too," he said, "I was thinking about that before you showed up actually."

"Really?"

"Yeah."

"Do you come here a lot?"

"More lately," he said, "I come here when I don't want to be home, which is most of the time," he said honestly.

"Things not good there?" she asked. "I mean you don't have to tell me or anything but if you want to talk about it…" she trailed off, "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have asked."

"It's ok," Nathan said, "yeah things have been less than… great at home. My dad, he's been pressuring more and more it seems like. Like nothing I do is good enough and each little thing I've done could have been better. I'm tired of trying to live up to his expectations."

"So don't."

"What?"

"Do whatever it is that you want or whatever it is that makes you happy."

"Basketball is what makes me happy."

"Then play it for you. Don't play it for him."

Nathan sighed, "it's not that easy."

"Sure it is."

"But it's not," he said, "I wish it was but it's not."

Nathan couldn't believe that he was actually talking to her about this stuff. He never talked to anyone about what was going on at home and he was surprised that the one he chose to talk to about this was Haley James. His brother's best friend. It was actually nice to talk to someone who didn't see him as Nathan Scott, Tree Hill High's bad ass basketball captain. He was glad she didn't see him as the dumbass who stole a school bus but had his dad get him out of getting trouble. "I'm sorry Nathan, I wish things could be different for you."

"I've gotten used to it," Nathan said and shrugged.

"But you shouldn't have to get used to something like that."

The two of them sat in silence before Nathan looked at his watch. "Are you going to Tim's party tonight?" he asked

"Isn't it at his beach house?"

"Yeah."

"I might go. Brooke and Peyton want me to, but I don't know if I am. Are you?"

"Yeah. He really wants me to go. I skipped the last party… so I'll probably go. You should come. It would be good to have someone to talk to tonight."

"Right like Nathan Scott doesn't have enough friend so he needs me there."

"Well it would be good to have someone I like there. Most of my so called friends are just there to get wasted and hook up. So it would be nice to have someone who's not like that to talk to."

Haley smiled and said, "well when you put it that way, I might just go." She grabbed his hand and looked at his watch and said, "if I'm gonna go, I should probably go get ready."

"Yeah. Me too. So I'll see you there?" he asked as the two of them stood up and walked towards their cars. Haley nodded, "I'll see you there Nathan." She unlocked her car and got in and he went towards his and did the same. He watched her drive away before he pulled off the grass and back on to the road. He was glad that he decided to go to the party tonight. More time away from his house. That was becoming a natural thing. Him finding anyway he could to get out of the house and be away for as long as possible. He pulled up to his house about 15 minutes later and saw that his mother's car wasn't there. He opened the garage and his dad's wasn't there either. Maybe he would be able to get ready and leave again before his parents even got home. He walked inside and into the kitchen.

He saw the orange pill bottle sitting on the counter from this morning. He walked over and picked it up and read the label on it. It was for his mom. It was anti-depressants. He didn't even know that she needed those. She seemed fine, but maybe it was because of the medicine she took. He wondered what other things she was taking. He walked up the stairs and into his parents room and he went to her side of the bed and opened the draw on her beside table. He saw about 10 more orange pill bottles. He picked them up and looked at the labels. They were all made out to her and most of them were pain killers or more anti-depressants. He dropped them back in the draw and shook his head before slamming the drawer shut again. He thought his mom was off pills, he didn't think he could handle going through this again. She was just finally getting over her dependency on them when she and his dad starting fighting again.

He walked into his room and shut the door behind him before he began to get ready for the party. He tried to get his mind away from the fact that his mom was using again. He thought he was done with that. But it seemed like things were just starting to get worse for him.

* * *

Nathan wore a pair of dark blue jeans and a blue sweater with a white stripe across the chest. He parked his car outside of Tim's house where everyone else was parked and he walked inside the house. He saw Tim in the kitchen standing near Jake, Peyton, Brooke, Lucas and Haley. Tim saw him and ran towards him. "Nate! You're here!" Nathan rolled his eyes and said, "nothing get's past you Tim." Nathan walked towards the kitchen with Tim following close behind. He walked in and grabbed a blue plastic cup and handed it to Brooke who filled it with beer before handing it back to him. "Thanks," he said quietly before drinking it down quickly.

Haley looked at him and could tell something was wrong. It was more than what they'd talked about earlier, he was upset about something else. Even though he wasn't saying it in words she could see it in his eyes. Something else was wrong. Nathan looked up at her and saw her looking at him. He knew she could tell that he was upset. He didn't know if anyone else could though.

Brooke initiated a game of I Never and they sat at the counter playing for about an hour until almost everyone was wasted. "I never," Brooke said trying to think of something and she chuckled, "uh, no I did that." Everyone around the table laughed and Nathan stood up and walked out of the kitchen but no one really seemed to notice. Except Haley. She watched him walk out the door and head towards the deck. She stood up to and walked out of the room while everyone continued to play I never. She walked out the door and saw Nathan leaning against the railing on the deck and she walked towards him. "Hey," she said, "are you ok?" she asked and stood next to him.

"I'm fine," he said, "I'm just kind of over this whole party," he said.

"I know the feeling. I didn't even really want to come tonight."

"Well I'd rather be here than at home."

"Me too," she said.

"Things not good at home for you either?"

"No," she said and leaned back against the wood. "My sister came home a few days ago. She dropped out of college and she'd been like all over the place. I don't even no where exactly. Most recently she was working in some like, Coyote Ugly bar in Georgia. But she came home and the thing you need to know about Taylor is, she only comes home when she needs something."

Nathan turned and looked at her and watched her talk about her sister. "Anyways," Haley continued, "I guess she got enough money from my parents and she took off one night. She didn't even say goodbye to any of us. She normally at least says good bye. But not this time. I guess she was in a hurry to get out of here. The thing is," Haley said, "I just worry about her. I don't know what she's getting herself into. I mean she talks about her friends in South Carolina and that she can just crash at their places and we shouldn't worry. But who knows what she's doing. Sometimes I get so worried and I don't if it's gonna be the last time I see her. Like she's just gonna some day need to stop coming home and not going to see her anymore."

"I'm sorry Haley."

Haley shook her head, "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have told you all that."

"I'm glad that you trusted me enough to tell me. I mean I know we've never really been close but I'm glad that you at least talk to me about this stuff. Sometimes it's good to be able to talk to someone you normally wouldn't vent all your feelings to. You know?"

"Yeah," Haley said, "I like that."

They stood in silence listening to the song Lapdance by N.E.R.D play through the speakers on the outside of the house before Nathan said, "I think my mom is relapsing on prescription drugs again."

Haley turned and looked at him not expecting what he'd just said. "What?"

"A few years ago I found out my mom had a drug thing with prescription drugs and she told me she was over it. There weren't any pill bottles in the house and things were getting good again and then my parents started fighting again. Over the littlest shit. It was crazy. Some nights I even heard them fight about Lucas and Karen and other stuff. And today I found a lot of pill bottles in my mom's dresser. She's using them again. Every time I see her take pills she always tells me it's for a head ache and I always pretend to believe her. But I know she's lying. I'm not stupid. I just wish there was something I could do you know? So she didn't feel like she had to take those. Like she has to be so dependent on them. Maybe I'm part of the problem."

"Don't say that," Haley said, "there's no way that that's your fault Nathan. No way. I'm sorry that you found out about that, but you should not blame yourself Nathan. It's not your fault."

Nathan stayed silent and watched the ways crash into the rocks and the water wash onto the shore. "Do you want to get out of here?" he asked a few minutes later, "I mean I'm over this party and we can just go somewhere else. Would you want to?"

"Sure," Haley said, "let's go."

The two of them walked around the deck until they made it to the front of the of the house and walked towards where their cars were parked. "Your car or mine?" Haley asked then added, "either way I'm driving."

"Then your car, no one drives my car."

"Really?" she asked, "then I make it my personal mission to one day get you to let me drive your car."

"Never."

"Come on Scott, I'm a good driver!"

"I'm sure, but it doesn't matter, no one drives that car but me."

The two of them walked towards her car and she got in the drivers seat and he got in the passenger side. They decided to drive to Front Street diner that was just in town. When they got there the two of them got out and walked inside. There weren't many people in there and they took a seat in one of the booths and waited for someone to come take their order. Nathan was surprised at how comfortable he felt around Haley. It usually took awhile for him to open up to people but with Haley it just felt natural. He was glad that they had talked earlier at the river court because if he hadn't, he knew they wouldn't be talking now. "Tell me something no one else knows about you," Nathan said.

"Um," Haley said thinking about something, "sophomore year, I cheated on a geometry test."

"Haley James cheated?"

"I didn't want to or anything. It was just that my dad was out of town and my mom was sick, and I had to take care of her. I didn't get to study and I panicked when it came to the test, so I cheated."

"Well I didn't expect that," Nathan said.

Haley laughed, "I'm not like proud of it."

"We've all had the times where we did something we're not so proud of Haley."

"I know but, it's not that big of a deal and I still feel so awful about it and it was 2 years ago."

"At least you never stole a school bus."

Haley laughed, "no I never did that."

They ordered and continued to talk about whatever topic they could think of. Sometimes it was serious, other times it made them laugh but the point was, they already felt like they could talk to each other about anything. "Are you coming to our game next week?" Nathan asked, "the one on Thursday?"

"Yeah, I'll be there. It's against Pickerington right?"

"Yep, so you know we'll win."

Haley smiled, "well then I'll go. I mean if I've got a guarantee from the captain."

Nathan smirked and said, "we always beat them, they suck Haley."

The two of them finished eating before walking back out to Haley's car. "So," she said, "it's pretty late, do you want me to take you back to the party to get your car?" she asked. Nathan shook his head, "do you think you could just take me home? I don't think I should drive."

"Oh yeah sure," she said starting her car, "I think that's probably a smart idea."

She started the drive towards his neighborhood surprised that she actually remembered how to get there. She'd only been there the one time and that was a year ago. They sat in a comfortable silence while music played through her stereo. "What song is this?" Nathan asked.

"The Blues by Switchfoot."

**It'll be a day like this one  
When the world caves in  
When the world caves in  
When the world caves in**

Nathan listened as the music played in the car and he was content with just sitting silently while it played. He was comfortable with her and he didn't want that feeling to go away. She pulled up in front of his house and said, "this is it right?" she asked and he nodded. "Yeah this is it," he opened the door and looked back at her, "I had fun with you tonight Haley."

She smiled, "thanks, so did I."

He got out of the car and walked towards the house and saw both of his parents cars. He walked through the side door and stood by one of the entrances to the kitchen and he could hear his parents yelling in the living room. This was one of the worst ones he'd heard in awhile. He walked away from the kitchen and around to the stairs where he stood and listened to them fight.

"I've had it Dan!" Deb yelled, "I can't do this anymore!"

"Oh get a hold of yourself! Maybe once you sober up a little bit you'll come to your senses!"

"I mean it! I want a divorce! I can't live like this anymore, why do you think I started taking the pills again!"

Nathan shook his head. He wasn't surprised at what he was hearing but he wished it wasn't true. "I know why you took those pills Deb! But you really need to get a hold of yourself. Do you really want Nathan to hear you like this?"

"I want a divorce Dan! I want you out of my this house!"

"This is my house."

"Fine then I'll leave. But you can be sure that Nathan is staying with me."

"I'm not leaving Deb."

"If you don't leave, so help me God I will stab you in your sleep!"

Dan shook his head and began to walk away from her and stopped when he was behind her and said, "do you really think that Nathan is going to pick you over me?" Deb could feel the anger radiating off her and she heard the door to Dan's office slam shut. She tucked her hair behind her ears and began to walk towards the stairs. She saw Nathan standing on the bottom step.

"Nathan…" she trailed off when she saw him then continued, "I'm so sorry that you heard that. I wish you hadn't."

"Well I heard it all. If you're going to get a divorce, then just do it. I'm tired of listening to you guys fight every night. I wish you would get a divorce so you could stop all this."

"Nathan-"

"Were you going to tell me you were taking those pills again? And don't tell me you're not. I heard you."

"Nathan I'm so sorry. It's been hard lately. I wish I was stronger and I could stop but I can't."

"Would you have told me if you thought I hadn't heard? Like it would even matter I already knew. I found the pills in your drawer mom. I found all of them."

"What were you doing going through my things?" she asked angrily.

Nathan shook his head and turned away from his mom before walking up the stairs. He heard her coming up the stairs and he was sure that she wanted to talk more but that was the last thing he wanted. He was so tired of being around them and he just needed to be left alone. He walked into his room and slammed the door shut behind him. He collapsed against his bed and let sleep over take his body while he tried to forget about what he heard his parents say.

**I'm singing this one like a broken piece of glass  
From broken arms an' broken noses in the back  
Is this the New Year or just another desperation?**

* * *

It was now Thursday and the day of their first game. All week Nathan felt like he worked extra hard to avoid his parents. He avoided talking to most people it seemed like. Everyone but Haley. He would stop by the café when he knew she was working and they would talk during her breaks or they would talk between classes. He was feeling closer to her in just these last few days than he felt with most people that he'd known since he was young. He saw her standing by her locker and her ran over to her. "Haley!" he yelled to get her attention. She stood by her locker in Ravens cheerleader uniform getting her books for her next class. She looked up and saw him make his way over to her.

"Hey," she said and bit her lip when he walked over.

"Nice uniform," he said and motioned to her. She ran her fingers through her hair and nodded.

"Yeah it's nice right." She looked at what he was wearing and said, "I think you look better though."

"Oh yeah," he said, "Whitey's new rule, ties on game day." She brought her hand to his collar and fixed it before smoothing his tie, "well you look very nice," she said. The bell rang and she shut her locker, "I'll see you later." She smiled at him and walked down the hall to her next class. She walked in and saw Peyton sitting in one of the desks near the back and she walked over to her. "Hey Blondie," Haley said and sat down. Peyton looked up and smiled. "Hey Hales, so I saw you and Nathan. Is there something going on with you two?" Peyton asked and smirked.

Haley could feel the blush on her cheeks, "we are just friends."

"Uh huh," Peyton said, "you looked pretty friendly."

"Oh please, me and Nathan… we are just not even…" she trailed off not knowing what else to say to the blonde, "that's just crazy."

"Why is it crazy?"

"In what world would Nathan Scott be interested in me?"

"Haley," Peyton said, "I don't know if you've noticed this, but you're hot. Why wouldn't he be interested."

"For one Nathan could get any girl he wants and the fact that his last serious girl friend was… you, makes me feel a little out of my league. Besides, we're not interested in each other like that."

"Right."

"We're not."

"If that's your story," she said and the bell rang signally the beginning of class and their teacher began to speak. Peyton leaned towards her and said, "but just so you know, I think you're exactly what Nathan needs right now."

Haley wanted to ask her what she meant but she didn't when their teacher sent them a look telling them to stop talking. What did she man that she was exactly what Nathan needed?

* * *

The game had started and Nathan was doing really well. He wanted to start off the season right and he thought he was. He'd scored more points in this game than anyone on the team. Which wasn't really surprising. Everyone expect that Nathan Scott would be the hero of the game and he was happy to prove them right. He felt like he was on fire that night. He looked up in the stands and saw his dad watching he was standing alone while his mom stood by Karen and Keith down closer to the court. He wasn't surprised that they were so far apart. He looked away from the court and paid attention to the game. He couldn't let anything like that distract him.

One of the players on Pickerington's team fouled Nathan and Haley could see the frustration etched onto Nathan's features. He moved to the free throw line and the ref handed him the ball. He bounced it on the court a few times and twirled it in his hands like he did every time he practiced his free throws at the river court. He looked up at the side lines and saw Haley standing on the side next to Brooke and Peyton. She sent him an encouraging smile and he smiled back. He looked back up at the hoop and shot the ball and it made it through effortlessly. Haley smiled and cheered for him and he winked at her before making his next shot.

"What's going on with you two?" Brooke asked and moved closer to Haley. Haley shook her head and said, "what? Nothing."

"That little wink he just sent you, was not nothing."

"See," Peyton said, "I told you there was something going on between them."

Haley groaned and rolled her eyes, "you guys are ridiculous."

Haley looked back and paid attention to the game while Brooke and Peyton continued to make comments about her and Nathan. By the end of the game the Ravens had won 74 to 38. Nathan walked out of the locker room after he changed back into his button up shirt and khaki pants. He walked out and saw Brooke and Haley talking to Lucas and Jake and Peyton walking out of the gym together. He also saw his dad standing by the bleachers. He was sure he was waiting to tell him all the things he'd done wrong during that game. Nathan walked over to his dad and said, "ok, let me hear it."

"You know what I'm going to say," Dan said.

"No I don't I think I played well tonight."

"You were sloppy and you should have had the last shot, not Lucas."

"We won dad what more do you want from me?"

Dan shook his head and walked away from him and towards the door to leave the gym. Nathan shook his head and turned around and saw his mom walk towards him. "Great game honey," she said. Nathan shook his head, "tell that to dad," he said and walked towards Haley, Lucas and Brooke. Deb watched her son walk away before she too walked towards the exit.

**You're pushing till you're shoving  
You bend until you break  
Till you stand on the broken fields where our fathers lay**

"You played great tonight Nate," Haley said as the two of them walked out of the gym.

"Thanks Hales, it wasn't too bad."

"You know you did awesome," she said and smiled

They walked out to the parking lot and towards his car and he said, "do you want a ride?" he asked. Haley shook her head, "No Lucas gave me a ride so I'll just go catch up with him," she said nodding towards his car.

"Ok, well then I'll see you tomorrow?" he asked.

She smiled and nodded, "yeah I'll see you later Nathan." She turned and walked towards Lucas and looked over her shoulder at him and smiled again before walking over to Lucas. Nathan smiled as he watched her walk away before he got in his car and began his drive home. He knew his parents would be there. He wondered when his dad was actually going to leave. He heard what his mom said, she wanted him out of the house, so why couldn't he just do them both a favor and leave. He walked inside and saw that his dad was watching TV in the living room. He made his way upstairs before he said anything to him and he walked past his parents room and saw his mom sitting on the edge of her bed. He watched as she popped some pills in her mouth before swallowing them down. She looked up and saw him watching her from the doorway. "Nathan…" she said but he walked away before she had the chance to say anything else.

**It'll be a day like this one  
When the world caves in  
When the world caves in  
When the world caves in  
When the world caves in  
When the world caves in  
When the world caves in**

* * *

The next week Nathan was thinking about the game against the Cavaliers that was going to be on Saturday. They played against Oak Lake on Tuesday and their next game was Saturday. This was the game that Nathan was determined to beat his father's records in. He walked downstairs and saw that Dan had brought home fast food for dinner for the two of them since Deb was going to be working late. Nathan saw him sitting at the kitchen island looking through the newspaper. "What are you doing dad? Looking for your name in the box scores?" he asked. Dan looked up at him and said, "you need to get serious this week. You have an important game coming up."

"You think I don't know that," Nathan said and sat down on one of the seats at the island and began to eat.

"You know who has the record for most points against the Cavaliers?"

"How could I forget? You remind me every time we play them. But I'm looking to top that this weekend."

"You wont," Dan said, "it's not that I don't want you too, but I know you won't. You know why? Cuz you're too weak."

Deb walked into the kitchen and saw the two of them eating. "Hey guys," she said, "sorry I'm late."

Nathan took a sip of his drink and set it back down before standing up and walking out of the kitchen. "What happened?" Deb asked.

"He's just got a lot on his mind with this game coming up. Nothing you would worry about."

Dan stood up and walked out of the kitchen and Deb walked towards the counter and picked up the pill bottle she left there before pouring a few into her hand and swallowing them.

Nathan walked into his room and picked up his cell phone before dialing Tim's number. He waited until he answered hoping that he would answer quickly. Nathan couldn't really think of a time when he really needed or for that matter wanted to talk to Tim. Even though Tim was one of his good friends, he liked to talk to him as little as possible. "Sup dawg," Tim said as he answered.

Nathan sighed, "you do know you're white right?"

"What's wrong with you?"

"Look, is your brother still dealing?"

"Yeah why?"

"I need to tear it up against Cove City."

"How is getting high going to help?"

"Not weed, Tim. Performance enhancers."

"Oh, well I'll see what I can get you. I'll have them by tomorrow."

Nathan hung up the phone before throwing it on to his bed. He had to beat his dad's record in this game. If he didn't he would never live it down. He had to prove how much better he was than his dad. He thought maybe if he did, his dad would lay off him and leave him alone. That was all he wanted. He just wanted his dad to leave him alone. Him and his mom. Why couldn't Dan just leave?

* * *

Nathan walked past his parent's room the next morning on his way down the stairs and saw that his mom was still asleep in bed. She usually left for work by now. He walked in wondering if maybe she just over slept. He walked in and saw pill bottles next to her bed and he shook his mom's shoulder. "Mom," he said, "mom you need to wake up." She mumbled something in his sleep and rolled over in her bed before falling back asleep. He looked at her pills and grabbed the bottles before putting them in his back pack. He didn't want his mom to take the pills anymore. If she didn't have them, she couldn't take them.

**There's nothing here worth saving,  
Is no one here at all?  
Is there any net left that could break our fall?**

* * *

Nathan stood by his locker and Tim walked over to him. "Hey man," he said and Nathan turned and looked at him. "I got what you asked for," he said and handed him a small bag with a few white pills in them and he said, "you have to be really careful with these though. I mean, they're like steroids on speed or speed on steroids. They're serious. So just be careful with them."

"Whatever man," Nathan said, "I'll be fine."

He opened the bag and poured a pill into his hand and popped it in his mouth. He opened his bottle of Aquafina and swallowed the pill. Tim started to walk away and then turned around and said, "you're welcome, by the way." Nathan looked away from him before taking another pill. The bell rang a moment later and he grabbed his books for his 6th period history class. He walked into the class room and saw Haley and he went to go sit by her. "Hey," she said, "how are you?"

"Fine," he said, "hey look can I come over tonight. I don't really want to go home."

"Of course," she said, "you know you can come over whenever you want."

He smiled and turned his attention to the teacher who started to talk. About half way through class the door swung open and Nathan looked up at the door and saw his mom walk into the class room. "Excuse me," she said to the teacher and walked over to Nathan's desk. "Nathan, what did you do with them?" she asked and he could hear the anger in her voice.

"I don't know what you're talking about," he said quietly.

"Don't lie to me Nathan, I know you have them."

Nathan sighed and reached into his back pack and pulled out her pills and set them on his desk. "Mom," he said, "it's me or the pills. If you take them I'm gonna live with dad." She looked at him and he could see her jaw clench. She grabbed the pills off his desk before walking out of the room. Nathan could feel the eyes of everyone in the room on him. Haley reached over and put her hand on his shoulder. "I'm sorry," she said, "are you ok?"

"I'll be fine."

* * *

Haley sat at her computer chair while Nathan laid on her bed behind her staring up at the ceiling. She was glad that he decided to come over tonight, he really needed to be away from his parents. Especially after what happened today. Nathan wasn't going to think about it while he was with her. When he was with Haley it felt like all that other crap going on in his life wasn't going on. So that's what he did, he pretended like it didn't happen. He sat up and looked at Haley who was doing her homework and looking things up on line.

"Thanks for letting me come over tonight," Nathan said.

Haley turned around and smiled, "of course. I told you Nathan you can come over whenever you want to. I'm always happy to be here if you need me."

"Thank you."

He stood up and stuck his hand out to her. "What?" she asked confused.

"Just stand up," he said and laughed. Haley took his hand and stood up so she was facing him and he wrapped his arms around her and hugged her tightly. To Nathan there was something so right about holding her in his arms. Her hair smelled like raspberries and her skin smelled like pomegranate and the perfume she always wore. He suddenly felt himself wondering what it would feel like to kiss her. He wondered if she would let him. He moved back a bit but still kept an arm around her waist. He brought his other hand up to cup her cheek and he swiped his thumb over her cheek bone. "I'm gonna kiss you," he told her and all she could do was nod. He moved closer to her and leaned down and captured her lips with his.

Haley wrapped her arms around his neck and tangled his other hand in her blonde hair. He traced her lips with his tongue asking permission to enter her mouth. She opened her mouth and his tongue slipped inside and met with hers. She could feel his tongue trace every crevice in her mouth. He pulled away from her a few seconds later and he moved backwards towards her bed. He sat on the edge of her bed and pulled her down to sit next to him. Haley smiled as their lips connected again.

He pushed them so that he was on top of her and he continued to kiss her. "Nathan," she laughed when he began to kiss her neck, "Nathan, my parents could be home anytime."

He laughed and kissed her lips again, "come on." He went back to kissing her neck and then moved his hands to front of her shirt and began to work on unbuttoning her shirt. "Nathan," she mumbled against her lips when she felt him working on getting her shirt undone. "Nathan… stop." He continued to work on her shirt while kissing her neck. She pushed against his shoulders until he was off of her. She got off her bed and began to button her shirt back up.

"What?" he asked not understanding why she looked so upset. "What's wrong?"

"I asked you to stop Nathan."

"Haley," he said standing up, "I'm sorry. Look we'll just hang out I'm sorry."

"I think you should go."

"Are you serious?" he asked with an edge in his voice. She walked over and held the door open and waited for him to get up. Nathan stood up and walked past her out the bedroom door. "Unbelievable," he mumbled on his way out.

**It'll be a day like this one  
When the sky falls down and the hungry and poor and deserted are found  
Are you discontented? Have you been pushing hard?  
Have you been throwing down this broken house of cards?**

* * *

Haley walked through the quad with Brooke and Peyton on Saturday night. She hadn't talked to Nathan since they night he'd been at her house. They had pretty much avoided each other since then. She had a feeling that Nathan was mad at her and she didn't really understand why. The fact that he was mad, made her even angrier. But she hated the way they ended things. She hated the fact that they were on rocky ground when it came to each other. She didn't even know what Nathan wanted them to be. She knew she had to talk to him about it. She saw him walking towards the gym and she ran from Brooke and Peyton to go catch up with him.

"Nathan!" she yelled. He pulled his head phones out of his ears and turned around and saw her standing behind him. "Haley," he said, "I don't have time to talk right now."

"Well can we at least talk later?"

"Haley! I don't have time for this right now!"

"What's your problem?" she asked and crossed her arms over her chest.

"My problem Haley? My problem is right on the other side of that wall and when I go in there, if I'm not perfect they're gonna eat me alive!"

She could see him shaking and she knew there was something wrong with him besides the game coming up. "Nathan, what's wrong? This isn't you."

"You don't know me Haley. This is how people are sometimes. People are mean, life's a bitch. You'll get used to it."

She rolled her eyes before turning around and walking away from him without another word. Nathan shook his head and put his head phones back in before walking into the gym to go change for the game. He replayed the whole conversation with Haley in his head and he wished more than anything he could take back the things he said. Right when the words came out of his mouth he wished he could take them back. He knew that she was already angry with him for what happened the other night, and what happened right now probably wasn't helping his case. But he couldn't think about it right now. Right now he had to concentrate on the game.

He changed into his uniform and opened his locker in the locker room. He grabbed the bag of pills that Tim had given him. There was only one pill left. He popped it into his mouth and swallowed it. "You already finished the bag?" Tim said, "you weren't supposed to take them that fast."

"I'm fine," Nathan said, "don't worry about it."

Nathan walked over to the door with the rest of the team. It was time for one of the biggest games he would play this season. They walked into the gym and everyone in the gym cheered loudly. He walked over to the sidelines with the rest of his team and they huddled up. He turned his head slightly to look over at Haley but he saw that she wouldn't look back towards him. He looked back at his coach as he began to speak. It was time to go out and he knew that tonight was going to be a night he would never forget.

**It'll be a day like this one  
When the world caves in  
When the world caves in  
When the world caves in**

* * *

It was the 4th quarter and Cove City had the ball. Nathan guarded the player with the ball and stole it when he began to dribble. Nathan just needed this last shot before he broke Dan's record. Dan watched anxiously from the stands. He didn't know how he would feel if Nathan beat him. He knew he should be proud of his son for it, but there was something nagging at him that told him he didn't want Nathan to beat him.

Nathan was double teamed by two of the Cove City players and he had the ball in his hand. He shoved one of the players in the shoulder with his and shot the ball towards the hoop. It went in, but when Nathan shoved the player he fell to the ground. Nathan heard the ref blow his whistle. "Basket doesn't count!" the ref yelled. Nathan turned around and walked towards him. "What?! Are you blind?! He was moving his feet!"

"Watch yourself son! Don't make me throw you of this game!"

"Yeah you better keep your eyes on the game!" Nathan yelled. The ref turned and looked towards Whitey. "Watch your boy coach." Jake grabbed Nathan's arms and directed him off the court and towards where Whitey and the team were huddled. Whitey began to speak but Nathan wasn't paying attention. He couldn't stop thinking about how he almost had it. He'd almost beat Dan and once thing stood in the way of that. He needed to beat him. That's all he could think about. Nathan looked down at his hands and saw that he was shaking. He knew it was because of the performance enhancers, but he would deal with that later. Right now he had to focus on the game. "Nathan, do you want to go back in?" Whitey asked, "if you go back in you need to watch yourself."

"Whatever just send me back in."

"Ok, you boys can do this."

They walked back out to the court and the ref handed the ball to Lucas. Lucas saw Nathan was open and he passed it to him. Nathan could feel his whole body shaking and his knees beginning to buckle. He looked at Jake and was about to pass to him. His vision turned blurry until he could see anything at all. He fell to the court and Lucas and Jake and other members of the team ran to him. Haley watched him fall the floor and she wanted to run to him to make sure he was ok. She saw his team mates surround him and watched as he was taken off the court. All she could think about was how worried she was for him and she hoped that he was ok.

**Is there nothing left now?  
Nothing left to sing  
Are there any left who hasn't kiss the enemy?  
Is this the New Year or just another desperation?**

* * *

Deb sat next to Nathan's bed in the emergency room. She looked at the ice packs that surrounded her son's over heated body. She didn't know what caused him to collapse tonight but watching him fall made her heart sink. All she wanted was for him to wake up so that she knew he would be ok. Every minute that he didn't wake up made her worry more. She looked at the other side of the bed and saw Dan standing next to Nathan's bed. She watched as he stroked Nathan's hair and waited anxiously for him to wake up. Part of her blamed her and Dan for what happened to Nathan that night. He was under enough stress as it was and she and Dan put more on him. She grabbed Nathan's hand and held it in hers. She used her other hand to wipe away the sweat on his forehead.

Nathan opened his eyes and looked around the room feeling dizzy and disoriented. "Nathan," Dan said quietly when he saw his son's eyes open. Deb looked up at Nathan and smiled when she saw that he was awake. "Nathan," she said happily, "you're awake. How are you feeling?"

"Tired."

"I'm so happy you're awake," she said and kissed his forehead.

"I'm gonna go get the doctor," Dan said and walked away from Nathan's bed. Deb sat back down and took Nathan's hand.

"I need you to know that I'm sorry," she said, "I'm sorry that I haven't been better for you lately and I'm sorry I've been so weak. But I'm gonna get help Nathan. I'm gonna have to go away for awhile. It's time that I got better. For me and for you. I need to be better for us Nathan. When I come back, things will be different. I promise you things will be different."

"I know mom," Nathan said. He forced a weak smile and said, "I love you mom."

"I love you too Nathan."

Dan walked in and said, "the doctor wants to talk to us Deb," he said and walked back out. Deb stood up and kissed Nathan's forehead again before walking out to talk to the doctor with Dan. Nathan could barely make out the voices of his parents and the doctor. He heard the doctor talk about the drugs that Nathan had been using. He knew eventually his parents would find out that he had taken performance enhancers. He didn't know what his dad would say to him but he was worried about the next fight it would cause.

**Does justice never find you? Do the wicked never lose?  
Is there any honest song to sing besides these blues?**

* * *

Haley got off the phone with Lucas and then dialed Nathan's cell phone number. She didn't know if he was still in the ER of if he was ok to go home. She didn't eve know if he was ok and that was what killed her. Watching him fall that night scared her and she just wanted to know that he was going to be ok. She heard his message come and she began to speak. "Hey it's me," she said, "I just wanted to call and see if you were ok. I'm really worried about you and I just want to know that you're ok. And I really hate the way we ended things-"

"So do I."

Haley turned around and saw Nathan standing in the door way to her room. He was still dressed in his white Ravens jersey with his warm up jacket and sweats on. "Hey," she said and pressed the end button on the phone before dropping it on her bed. "How are you?" she asked quietly looking at the broken boy in front of her.

"Not so good," he said with a croaky voice, "I hope it's ok that I came up here. No one answered the door so I just came in."

"My parents went to see Taylor, they're gone for the weekend." She walked over to him and wrapped his arms around her and hugged her back just as tightly. "I was so worried about you," she said, "and I'm really sorry about things that happened between us earlier."

"I'm sorry too," he said and the two of them went to sit at the foot of her bed. "I need to tell you something," he said.

"Ok."

"I've made a lot of bad choices Hales. Sometimes because of my dad, sometimes by choice and I wish I could take them back. Tonight is one of the ones I want to take back."

"Nathan it's ok…"

"No it's not," he said, "it's not ok. I'm not ok. I was so scared tonight when I fell on the court. The last thing I thought about before I fell wasn't the fact that I wasn't going to beat my dad's record. I didn't care about that. The last thing I thought about was you. I promised myself that if I could, I would get up and walk over to you… and I'd tell you how much I need you and how much I want you. And how nothing else matters." Haley smiled slightly and cupped his cheeks in her hands and planted a kiss on his lips. He tangled his hand in her hair and kissed her back before pulling away and resting his forehead against hers.

"I want you too Nathan."

He pecked her lips again and smiled at her. She stood up to walk towards the door and she shut it behind her. "Haley," Nathan said, "can I stay with you tonight?" Haley smiled and nodded, "of course." Nathan worked on getting his warm up jacket off and pulled off his jersey and he sat on her bed in his sweatpants and wife beater with his white basketball shoes on his feet. He sat at the edge of her bed and he made her bed look smaller. She walked over to the bed and the two of them laid down next to each other with his arms wrapped around her tightly.

"My mom's going to rehab," Nathan said after they laid in silence for awhile, "she told me that while I was in the hospital."

"That's great Nathan," she said, "she's gonna get better, I know it."

"I hope so. And I think my parents are going to finally get a divorce. And I'm actually happy about it. Is that weird?"

"Not considering who your parents are."

Nathan chuckled, "yeah that's true."

The two of them laid there talking into the early morning hours until they fell asleep around 4 in the morning. They woke up a few hours later and Nathan pulled Haley's body closer to his. Haley woke up and snuggled her head closer to Nathan's chest. He turned his head and looked at her clock and saw that it was 11:30. He sighed and said, "I hate to say this, but maybe I should get back to the madness." Haley groaned and gripped Nathan tighter. "But hey," he said, "if I could I'd stay here all day." Haley smiled and kissed his lips before moving off him.

"Ok," she said, "I'll talk to you later," she said as he slipped his shoes back on.

"Nathan," she said, "about the other night…"

"Haley," he said turning to look at her, "it's not about sex with me," he said, "when you're ready… I will be too."

She sat up and wrapped her arms around his neck and pressed her lips against his. She opened her mouth and her tongue met his while their lips moved over each others. They pulled away a minute later and he smiled before kissing her again. "Ok," he said and stood up, "I'm really gonna go now." He walked towards the door and turned to look back at her. He winked before walking out the door and she collapsed back against her pillows with a big smile on her face.

Nathan had a feeling that the smile on his face wouldn't go away any time soon. He was glad that he went to see Haley last night. He knew that he needed to apologize and tell her how he felt about her. He was so grateful that he had her in his life now. He knew that she was exactly what he needed. She was there to be his escape and he knew that he could count on her. She was exactly what he needed and he would do whatever it took to make sure things worked with them. He wanted her and he needed her and nothing else mattered.

**And nothing is okay  
Till the world caves in  
Till the world caves in  
Till the world caves in  
Till the world caves in  
Till the world caves in  
Until the world caves in  
Until the world caves in  
Until the world caves in  
Until the world caves in  
Until the world caves in  
Until the world caves in**

**Ok I know this is crazy long but I've been working really hard on this for a really long time and I would really love reviews! It would mean so much to me! I would have had this up sooner but after I was like… 10 pages into it my computer shut down and it wasn't saved so I had to start over from the beginning! It was horrible and this has taken me forever to do! So please let me know what you think about this and review! Also, for those of you who read my old one shot Last Name, I've been working on a sequel to that which hopefully will be up after I've updated some more stories.**


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